NuLife DiariesVolume 1 September 2020

Welcome to the first edition of our newsletter!

We hope you enjoy reading it just as much as we enjoyed putting it together. We think it’s important that we keep in touch with our wider NuLife community and keep you abreast of what has kept us busy since the beginning of 2020. While we look forward to a time when we can see you all and get our programmes back on their feet, here is a glimpse into what we

have been doing this year.

The Honeykidz Workshop assembled a motivated bunch of 7

to 15 year-olds excited to begin their volunteering journey with a fun-filled morning of games and

role play exercises designed to get them thinking about developing a

volunteer spirit.

The Ambassador Workshop assembled an enthusiastic

group eager to explore their interest in volunteering for

NuLife and discover our revamped programmes and

services.

The Champions Workshop brought together a select bunch of helping professionals to reflect on how they could provide pro-bono counselling support to carefully identified NuLife clients needing an additional layer of comfort and

assistance.We set the ball rolling with three tailor made workshops in

February and March 2020

Engaging Our Volunt�rs

The pandemic halted us in our tracks and numbed us with its sweeping financial, medical and psycho-social aftermath. We learnt to adapt to the circuit breaker measures so we could continue to serve those who needed us to look out for them even more during the extraordinarily difficult months that followed.

During March, April and May 2020, we delivered cooked food, fresh produce, poultry and seafood to selected NuLife families burdened with health, mobility and financial pressures that made them particularly vulnerable in a COVID-19 world. While we may not be able to name all the large-hearted individuals whose compassion for the less fortunate fuelled this critical initiative, they know who they are and we cannot thank them enough for stepping forward without being asked to.

A big shout out here to Eagles Car Club (SG). They contacted NuLife to offer their services and it was thanks to their selfless flexibility that cooked meals provided by Casuarina Curry, Sri Sun and NuLife volunteers reached our beneficiaries quite literally at their doorsteps! Their assistance was crucial in getting these curated meals delivered to those unable to cook for themselves at a time when “eating out” was not an option. It was a team effort coordinated by NuLife staff and seamlessly acted upon by Eagles Car Club (SG).

The pandemic also presented our counselling team with new challenges as they tried to define how they could continue to attend to cases given the limitations placed by the circuit breaker. We handled a high volume of calls and our counsellors made a smooth shift to online counselling to ensure consistent, therapeutic care to all our clients. A number of our anxious and depressive clients were not particularly receptive to the online format as they were more comfortable with the comfort of face to face counselling. We also saw an increase in cases linked to matrimonial conflict and family violence. Finding alternative accommodation for individuals caught in the midst of a matrimonial conflict was complicated as families struggled to transform living spaces into workspaces and individuals tried to find quiet corners in crowded homes.

The Singapore government introduced various temporary relief measures designed to ease the financial strain on individuals and families, the self-employed and businesses to help them survive the dramatic financial consequences of the pandemic. We compiled a list of the various financial assistance schemes and presented them in an easy to understand format to help the community keep track of all the measures introduced and identify those that were most beneficial to them. Our website gave an overview of the various assistance programmes on offer, the eligibility criteria for each programme and links to websites and forms to facilitate the application process for individuals, families, elderlies and corporate and non-corporate (Voluntary Welfare Organisations and Social Service Agencies) entities.

�e COVID-19 Chaenge

Eagles Car Club (SG)

The first in a series of planned online seminars focussed on the invisible struggle faced by those battling depression. The interactive session encouraged active sharing from the participants and offered fresh insights to better understand this commonly misunderstood mental health disorder. Ms Sheena Jebal, CEO NuLife, explored the myths surrounding this affliction, threw some light on the different kinds of depression and the biopsychosocial factors that impact those affected.

We hope to organise more online seminars to further our objective of increasing public awareness and education on areas related to mental health and wellness. While we will do our utmost to support those needing our help and assistance, we would like to direct you to a few resources that provide tips and tools that can help you manage your health and well-being.

Online Seminar on August 28, 2020

Depre�ion: �e Invisible Stru�le

We look forward to hearing from you! Don’t hesitate to get in touch with us directly or through our social media platforms on Facebook or Instagram to tell us what you think.

In the meantime, do appreciate yourself and stay connected!

NuLife Counselling nulife_ counsellingwww.nulife.com.sg

Manhattan House, 151 Chin Swee Road #04-02 Singapore 169876 Tel: 6300 8706 / 9734 1560 ccs@nulife.com.sg

If you have had a chance to visit the NuLife website, you have probably noticed that our Annual Report for 2019 has been uploaded. Do take some time to read it – it highlights our 2019 milestones and throws some light on those who make NuLife the organisation it is – our volunteers, committee

members, donors, counsellors and staff.

Some of the other additions to the website in the last months:

Revised write-ups on the RobinHood & Feeding Singapore projects, with detailed flowcharts explaining the processes followed to ensure a seamless execution of these community outreach projects.

A compilation of COVID-19 financial schemes and disbursements for individuals, families, senior citizens and corporates.

Our revised counselling fee structure for different categories of paying and non-paying clients.

An updated listing of our In-House, Locum and Practising Counsellors.

We were delighted to be able to find the time for a staff dinner with Mrs Shoba Verghese, Chairman of our Board.

And, receive new work stations! NuLife staff, who had been working in teams from home and the office at Manhattan House during April and May 2020, came back to the office in June 2020 to work in two shifts in keeping with National Council of Social Services (NCSS) guidelines. What made our return to the office special was the delivery of eight new workstations in July 2020.

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